Rebecca Fotu Morgan Hill Oct 14, 2008 13:59 pm

Hi,

I am trying to get a list of credible carbon offsets that have projects in the U.S. It appears that most offsets act as a subsidy rather than actually reducing an exact amount of carbon for a price. When I try to research " how many windmills were built using carbon offset funds," there is never a true answer. I know that there are no laws governing offsets, but for those who have reduced emissions as much as possible and need to offset a flight, this is the only viable option. We are currently looking at establishing a local carbon offset project involving tree planting and the cost to offset one ton of carbon is $57; A fight to Europe would cost over $150; this is 6 times more than any other offset sold online, which makes me skeptical about the integrity of other carbon offsets. Plus, paying your way out of pollution should not be inexpensive especially when most offsets go towards very expensive technologies. I have even come across an article where a company was creating CFCs just to destroy them and sell the carbon offsets.

Rebecca Fotu

Environmental Programs Coordinator
City of Morgan Hill